LSU is gearing up for a rematch with Caitlin Clark and Iowa in the 2023 national championship game on Monday night. However, just before the Tigers secured their spot in the Elite 8 with a victory over UCLA on Saturday, The Washington Post’s highly anticipated story on coach Kim Mulkey was finally released. Following LSU’s first game of the women’s NCAA tournament on March 23, Mulkey caused a stir by stating that she would take legal action against the paper if it published any defamatory content about her.
The extensive piece by reporter Ken Babb spans nearly 7,000 words but does not contain any information that appears to threaten Mulkey’s position. Mulkey expressed her stance on Sunday, stating, “I haven’t read that article. I refuse to.” She mentioned that she plans to have her legal team review it for any potential concerns and determine the appropriate course of action. While Mulkey didn’t pay much attention to The Washington Post article after LSU’s victory on Saturday, she did raise objections to a commentary piece in The Los Angeles Times by UCLA beat writer Ben Bolch. After Mulkey criticized the article as sexist, the newspaper amended the online version, acknowledging, “A previous iteration of this commentary did not meet Times editorial standards. It has been revised.”
Mulkey specifically took issue with a phrase labeling LSU as “dirty debutants,” among others. The article’s references to LSU as “villains,” and characterizations of UCLA as “milk and cookies” and “America’s sweethearts” were also removed, as reported by USA Today. Mulkey vehemently stated, “I won’t stand by while you attack young individuals, and there were elements in this commentary that should be deemed offensive, particularly to women. It was blatantly sexist.”